At least two people were killed when an explosion ripped through a fireworks factory in the north-east of China, a state news agency said today.

The official Xinhua News Agency said up to 50 workers were in the plant in Yichun city in Heilongjiang province at the time of today`s explosion.

It said there were two confirmed deaths and that 22 workers were rescued. The fate of the remaining workers is not yet known.

The blast was felt up to two miles away from the factory, with windows knocked out. Huge plumes of smoke were seen, and secondary explosions were also heard.

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